The Thrill of the lower-voice choir
English Dance and Song April 2024
This news item is based on articles in English Dance and Song, the magazine of the English Folk Dance and Song Society. The world’s oldest magazine for folk music and dance, EDS was first published in 1936 and is essential reading for anyone with a passion for folk arts.
The Seeds of Love: Roger Nicholls on the energetic rise and slow decline of the male-voice choir, and hopes for a resurgent future
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Cecil Sharp and the 150th anniversary of the birth of Gustav Holst. What do these two musical luminaries have in common? Well, the first song reputedly collected by Sharp was The Seeds of Love, sung to him in Somerset by John England. In 1924, 100 years ago, Holst arranged this song for four-part men’s voices. One year earlier, Holst’s good friend Ralph Vaughan Williams had published his own arrangement. But who were these arrangements written for?
In the early 20th century a new musical movement grew up parallel to Sharp’s folk-song revival. Working men, in search of camaraderie and release from the daily grind, banded together to form male voice choirs. To give one example, a choir joined by my grandfather and father, representing the mining community of Moira in Leicestershire, was formed in 1910. By the time Holst and RVW were arranging for such groups the General Strike was approaching and the Moira men were touring the Midlands to raise money for their families. Apart from singing strongly at local Methodist Chapels, these men had little musical background. Conducted by the local baker, some choir members learnt to sing using the tonic-sol-fa method (do-ray-me...). As time went on they became more proficient, entered competitive festivals and searched for increasingly sophisticated output. Sadly, by the 1980s my father reported that only one miner was left in the choir and members now mostly came from white-collar professions.
Unfortunately male voice choirs are in decline in many parts of the country and much of the repertoire referred to above is seldom heard. My father couldn’t wait to join his choir at 18, but how many young men these days would have the background or interest to do so? All is not lost, however, as there are efforts throughout the country to rejuvenate the movement.
Community choirs, perhaps based on the ‘men’s shed’ philosophy, have sprung up and off-shoots such as barbershop groups and sea-shanty singers have gained popularity. These often require charismatic leadership and a sense of welcome and inclusivity.
Searching for The Techtonics, The Spooky Men or Ladysmith Black Mambazo gives an idea of just how much male voices can do!
A recent symposium led by Peterborough Male Voice Choir discussed how established, traditional choirs can attract young members. Modernising repertoire, performance style, uniform and branding (‘lower voice’ rather than ‘male voice’, for example) were considered key.
On 15 June at Cecil Sharp House you can hear some of these neglected gems sung by the Imperial Male Voice Choir in our Seeds of Love concert. Do come along to find out what Benjamin Britten and Steeleye Span have in common!
Singer and choir leader Dom Stichbury continues the story…
The low turnout of men in choir ranks inspired me to start Chaps Choir, a project that aims to attract younger men into group singing. At our first session in 2013 over 50 chaps turned up. Most were under 40 and had not sung in a choir as an adult. Two years later Bellow Fellows was formed, and is now also a vibrant community with over 50 members meeting weekly, aged from 20-something to octogenarian.
Both are part of a loosely defined movement of alternative men’s chorus, sitting outside the traditional choral scene. We teach arrangements by ear and offer an inclusive and informal approach. We are a small part of the wider community singing world, held together largely by the Natural Voice Network, an organisation with over 700 members who commit to delivering inclusive and open-access singing.
Community singing and folk music are natural companions. Learning simple unaccompanied harmony songs by ear is the staple of many groups. Some choir goers might hope for another Beatles song or the latest pop tune, but I’ve rarely had complaints when teaching lesser-known songs from the folk idiom.
Bellow Fellows have enjoyed works by Coope-Boyse-Simpson, Cyril Tawney, Robert Burns, The Young ’Uns and learnt pieces by active choral composers such as Ali Burns and Anna Tabbush. Ditties from Appalachia and shanties feature, alongside a version of Blondie’s Atomic. We borrow songs from the Georgian tradition and tip our hat to the inimitable Spooky Men’s Chorale. A new canon of arrangements and songs that are suited for community lower voices has slowly been developed.
In research on men and singing by London South Bank University, members of Chaps Choir reported a type of support and friendship they couldn’t find elsewhere. They linked their mental health and well-being to the deeper emotional expression that comes with group singing.
I welled up on my first night… other guys said yeah that happened to me… the emotion suddenly comes… you’re like ‘Oh my god’– I didn’t expect this.
For some, being in an all-male group provided safety and permission to participate.
The experience of harmony singing is so universally joyful and fulfilling that keen new choir members will always appear, but innovations can help to overcome barriers to participation. For instance Manchester’s The Sunday Boys recently rebranded themselves as a lower voices choir, making them trans-inclusive and open to anyone who sings in the lower octaves.
The male voice community choir is one way to encourage more men into singing, but it doesn’t solve the same recruitment challenge faced by most mixed voice groups. This is a complex and multi-faceted topic that requires deeper exploration. My hope is that men’s groups can be a gateway for new singers into the wider scene, and anecdotally I have seen this play out.
Dom Stichbury is one half of singing duo Ben & Dom and a member of The Spooky Men’s Chorale.
Bellow Fellows will be taking part in a community singing concert at Cecil Sharp House on 20 June 2024 to celebrate the Sharp centenary.
